Tuesday, November 17, 2015

Titanium x 4

At
the beginning of July, I had to make a decision.I was injured, and I knew I needed at least
six weeks to fully heal.I had about 20
races scheduled, including some expensive international trips. Finally, I had some big long-term longs.Rather than cancel several trips and abandon
my goals, I decided to keep racing almost every weekend until mid-December.

It’s
been difficult.I’ve done what I can to
protect my right leg, but then my left leg started to bother me.I’ve continued racing, but I’m not doing the
day-to-day training.As a result, I’m
getting really out of shape.I’ve also
had other difficulties, which are at least partially attributable to no longer
getting the daily exercise I used to get.

Now,
I’m getting the payoff.I had four long-term
goals that I could reach by the end of the year.I reached the first one last weekend.I’ll reach another next weekend.For the other two, I have to wait three more
weeks.

At
the start of the year, one of my goals was to run 52 marathons or ultras this
year.In Marathon Maniacs, that’s one of
the criteria for Titanium, which is the highest level.Once you earn it, you attain that level for
life, but I’ve met the Titanium criteria three years in a row, and I wanted to
do it one more time.

In
2012, I reached Titanium by running marathons in 30 different states or countries.In 2013, I did it my running 53
marathons.In 2014, I did it both
ways.I ran 53 marathons, and they were
spread over 31 different states or countries.I expected to do it this year by running at least 52 marathons.Instead, I did it by running in at least 30
different states or countries.I didn’t
plan it.It just worked out that way.

For
this criterion, US states, Canadian provinces and other countries all count equally.The District of Columbia is treated like a
state.So far this year, I’ve run 44
marathons or ultras, and they’ve been in 22 different states, DC, and seven
other countries.Here are the places
where I’ve run this year:

Mississippi (Mississippi Blues
Marathon)

Alabama (First Light Marathon)

The Bahamas (Marathon Bahamas)

Louisiana (Rock N Roll New Orleans
Marathon)

California (Surf City Marathon)

Texas (Rocky Raccoon 50)

Georgia (five races)

Tennessee (Shelby Forest Loop Marathon)

Arkansas (Little Rock Marathon)

District of Columbia (Rock N Roll DC
Marathon)

Kansas
(Wicked Marathon)

Austria
(Vienna City Marathon)

Massachusetts
(Boston Marathon)

Maryland
(Independence Series)

Delaware
(Independence Series)

Pennsylvania
(Independence Series)

New
Jersey (Independence Series)

New
York (Independence Series)

South
Africa (Comrades Marathon)

Oregon
(five races)

Minnesota
(three races)

Colorado
(Rockies Marathon)

Switzerland
(Swissalpine K78)

Alaska
(Moose’s Tooth Marathon)

Wisconsin
(two races)

Missouri
(Flatlanders 6 Hour)

United
Kingdom (Loch Ness Marathon)

Portugal
(Rock N Roll Lisbon Marathon)

New
Mexico (Day of the Dead Series)

Turkey
(Istanbul Marathon)

By
the end of the year, I’ll also do marathons in Washington and Hawaii, making
a total of 32 states or countries.

Having
now met at least one of the Titanium criteria for a fourth consecutive year, I
don’t feel the need to run 52 marathons this year.Instead, I’ll settle for 51, which will help
me reach a different goal.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Follow by Email

About Me

I’ve been running marathons since 1983 and ultramarathons since 1998. I’m not an elite athlete, but I train hard, and I race hard. I try to race as often as I can, while still striving to do my best in each race. I also use races as an opportunity to travel to different places and meet other runners.